Build A Community And Tenant Retention Will Follow
If your customer service mission is to build loyalty, trust and relationships with multifamily residents, find an everyday occasion to say, “Thank you for leasing at our apartment community, we appreciate you.”
Make your rental residents fall in love with you and your apartment community, to feel as if they’re truly home and a part of something special so they’ll never want to rent anywhere else. Your residents’ perception of quality apartment living is influenced by the story you tell and the multi housing community you create.
Improve your rental tenant retention rates by taking advantage of every opportunity to create a high-quality personalized apartment marketing message or interaction each time you communicate with residents.
Want to Know The 8 Easy Steps to Get More Lease Renewals?
Tenant Retention Takes a Lesson from Farmer’s Markets
The city of Mercer Island holds its Farmers Market on weekends. Of course, there are lots of farmers displaying fruits, vegetables and flowers like you would expect to see at any community market. But the bigger story is the crowd of people converging on the unsuspecting produce growers.
The line for Hedlin Farms is about twenty people deep and the Gelato cart is quickly running out of the two most popular flavors: chocolate chip and watermelon. Within an hour of opening, the organic pasta guy’s sign describing his ravioli options simply says, “Out!” The cupcake ladies are manning a table of empty cake stands.
Could it be that this many people are desperate for organic vegetables and other treats? Probably not, but participation in this event shows a definite craving for connecting with community members, neighbors and friends. Entire families are strolling through stalls, dozens of dogs tag along on leashes and teenagers loiter near the pizza stand.
This is an outing – an event – a gathering.
Savvy property managers can take advantage of this phenomenon by initiating resident programs or hosting retention events that foster togetherness, quality time and connectivity.
There are hundreds of ideas for resident events and apartment community activities you can lead to enhance tenant retention, but to keep with the farmers market theme, how about sponsoring local farmers and artisans on your community site with pop up stands?
You can reach out to local farmers in your area and start a food stand today. Local Harvest helps you locate farmers markets, family farms, and other sources of sustainably grown organic food in your area. Can you provide reusable shopping bags to leasing prospects, as a move-in or renewal gift for your multifamily renters? Imagine your property management logo strolling around the weekly market.
Other ways to join the eat-like-you-give-a-damn movement while creating a sense of community and your multifamily property and showing rental residents you care about their health is to give them more control over what they put in their bodies. Start a community pea patch or garden on your property where multi housing residents and property managers alike can bond over digging in the dirt.
Food that everyone grows can be enjoyed at community summer barbecues or fall harvest celebrations. You could also hire a shuttle and host a U-Pick the Produce farm field trip as a great resident activity idea.
Many multifamily studies and surveys indicate that renters who feel a sense of community and as though they’re a part of something bigger are more likely to renew an apartment lease and stay around a little longer.
a key driver of satisfaction
among apartment residents”
J.D. Power & Associates
study of apartment management companies
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